


my best friend's brother is the present for me

by chanscrown



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Awkward Crush, Christmas, Christmas Dinner, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Puns, Crushes, Declarations Of Love, Eventual Romance, Falling In Love, Family Dinners, First Love, Home for Christmas, Lee Felix is a Panicked Gay (Stray Kids), M/M, Memories, Memories of the Past, Mutual Pining, Past, Past Memories, Ugly Holiday Sweaters, best friends hyunlix, hyunjin finally got his aussie dream as he should, hyunjin is apart of the bang family in this fic, mentions of both the bang and lee family in this js
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:43:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27714257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chanscrown/pseuds/chanscrown
Summary: lee felix considers himself a pretty calm person.sure, sometimes he freaks out over the smallest of things every once in a while, but those are tiny! he’s fine.that is, until he joins his best friend hyunjin’s family for christmas and reunites with hyunjin’s older brother, chris, who's home for the holidays.while it's sweet & all to have the bang family reunited, it only kickstarts multiple memories for felix about the past: including hismassivecrush on chris, who's gotten hotter over the years.all felix knows is that he's either gonna die or have his dream hallmark christmas moment; he's not sure yet....on second thought, maybe death is inevitable.
Relationships: Bang Chan & Lee Felix, Bang Chan/Lee Felix
Comments: 3
Kudos: 132
Collections: STAY CAROLS 2020





	my best friend's brother is the present for me

**Author's Note:**

> this was prompt #027 for staycarols fest 2k20: Person A had a crush on their bff's older brother in The past which are rekindled during a family Christmas dinner!
> 
> i had so much fun writing this and special shoutout to the prompter, i hope i did ur prompt justice!!

“ _Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way; Christmas in Australia on a scorching summer’s day…"_

It’s a warm December afternoon in Sydney as Christmas songs lightly play in the background within the Bangs’ family home. 

Felix Lee and his best friend, Hyunjin Bang, are in the living room playing a random board game they stole from Hyunjin’s younger brother’s room. At the same time, Hyunjin’s father sits in his leather recliner, reading his newspaper with his mother’s in the kitchen.  
  


“Mrs. Bang, I love the Christmas decorations you put up this year,” Felix compliments Hyunjin’s mother as she steps into the living room and places two steaming mugs of hot chocolate next to the boys’ board game.

“Oh, Felix, you’re such a sweetheart,” she responds with a gentle smile. “Help yourself to some cocoa before it gets cold, okay?”

He returns the warm smile, quickly turning back to the game before Hyunjin begins complaining about Felix being slow again. He eagerly shakes the dice in his right palm before releasing it over the board, the tune of Jingle Bells slowly fading away and later being replaced with the classic twelve days of Christmas as Felix rolls a seven.

“I’m so glad the semester’s finally over,” Hyunjin remarks in relief while Felix moves his game piece across the board. 

Felix nods in agreement. “Same here. I’m so glad it’s finally Christmas,” he says, handing the dice back to Hyunjin.  
  


Felix loves _everything_ about Christmas- the colder weather, sweater season, bright decorations, baking, and the element of surprise; it’s his favorite holiday. In Felix’s opinion, the best part of this December holiday that makes Christmas _truly_ Christmas is the quality time he gets to spend with his family and friends.

“What are your plans for the Christmas holiday, Felix?” Hyunjin’s mother suddenly asks out of the blue.  
  


Felix scratches his head sheepishly.

Unfortunately, this year there would be some changes to holiday plans at the Lee household.  
  


“Well…” he starts, “Rachel has plans with her friends while mum and dad are going out of town for business and won’t return until New Year’s, so I’ll be home alone with Olivia.”

Hyunjin and his parents widen their eyes in shock. 

  
“What?” Felix questions confusedly.

“Just you _and_ Olivia for the holidays? Are you sure that’s okay, Felix?” Hyunjin asks.

Felix gravely nods. “Yeah, just the two of us. But I think Olivia said one of her friends also invited her to their family’s Christmas, so I’ll probably be home alone if my sister says yes.”  
  


A silence falls in the Bang household.

Felix can sense the concern in the air and clears his throat before continuing. “I promise I’m okay, though! Don’t worry!” He clarifies. It would just be like any other day off for Felix- a time to improve cooking skills without having others bothering him or solely sleeping in. It’s either-or.  
  


But Hyunjin, ever the drama queen, disagrees. “And live a real-life reenactment of _‘Home Alone_ ’? I don’t think so,” he scoffs. “Knowing how you are, you’d probably let a stranger inside and die in a heartbeat.”

Felix is taken aback by the comment. “I- what’s that supposed to mean?!” 

Hyunjin rolls his eyes. “Oh please, as if we’re not gonna forget the Pizza Hut incident,” his best friend mutters, and Felix’s eyes immediately widen when remembering _exactly_ what he was talking referring to.

He’s still sorry to that ‘Chang’ guy, or whatever the name on his badge was. The poor guy definitely _didn’t_ expect a kiss as a tip, thanks to a rigged game of truth or dare.  
  


“Seriously, Felix,” Hyunjin adds, “You being alone at home on Christmas does not seem like a good idea. That would save multiple guys and poor pizza delivery drivers the trauma..”

Felix was about to defend himself once more from the slander, but it's not until a loud, shrilling scream interrupts them that's heard from upstairs, instantly taking everyone back by surprise.

  
That’s when Hyunjin’s younger sister Hannah comes running down the stairs on cue.

  
“Mum! Dad!” she shouts before pausing to catch a breath, “You won’t believe it!”

Mr. Bang puts down his newspaper to look up at his daughter. “Easy there, Hannah,” he warns, “What’s the matter?”

Hannah takes another deep breath before blurting out to everyone the news. “Chris said he’s coming home for Christmas!” 

  
Upon hearing Hannah saying that, Hyunjin’s pencil drops, Mr. Bang has a look of pure shock, and Mrs. Bang seemed as if she was about to cry.

Felix, on the other hand, freezes.  
  


“Chris… Our Chris?” Mrs. Bang questions.

Hannah nods enthusiastically.  
  


Felix has now moved from freezing to straight on panicking.  
  


“I was texting him earlier, and he said so! He already bought the plane tickets and everything; he’s coming home!” She brightens, “Plus, he promised to bring me a few items from Seoul this time!”

“Doesn’t he have a job to do instead of you constantly texting him random junk?” Hyunjin asks.

Hyunjin’s younger sister rolls her eyes at his remark. “As if you don’t do that too!” she argues before her phone loudly dings another notification. Felix watches Hyunjin shrug at the response- she had a point.

“Ooh, Chris just texted again!” she happily reports as everyone watches from afar as Hannah unlocks her phone to check her brother’s newest message, but it’s not until they all notice Hannah’s smile falter that concern rises.  
  


“What is it, Hannah?” Mrs. Bang asks, voice full of concern.

Hannah smiles sheepishly. “Oh, uh… He just said I shouldn’t tell you guys about his return since it’s his Christmas gift to us- especially you, mum.”

  
“But we _do_ know, Hannah,” Hyunjin deadpans.

“...Yeah, exactly.”

The rest of the family share a look.  
  


“Do you think if we faked being surprised when Chris comes home, then he wouldn’t suspect a thing?” Hyunjin wondered out loud.

Mr. Bang hums. “That would be a good idea, Hyunjin.” The rest of the family nods, but Hannah shakes her head. “That would be pointless since I already told Chris that you all know.”  
  


Everyone groans.

“ _Hannah..._ ”   
  


Felix has been silent since the whole announcement occurred. However, he’s been internally repeatedly chanting _No, no, no, not him_ instead.

“Felix, didn’t you say your parents and sisters would be gone for the holidays?” Mr. Bang asks, interrupting his thoughts of refusing to accept the belief that Christopher Bang was coming home for the holidays. He blinks at the question. “Uh… yes? But I’m fine, Mr. Bang, don’t wo-“

“Nonsense! You should join us for Christmas dinner!” Mrs. Bang jumps in. The rest of the Bang family seem to agree with that, including Hyunjin, who seems most excited by the idea.

“Oh, gosh, yes! We’re hosting Christmas this year, Lixie! Come join us; you can even stay the night!” his best friend excitedly contributes.   
  


_Bad idea.  
  
_

“Oh, no, no, I really shouldn’t,” Felix nervously dismisses, waving it off. “Since Chris is coming back home from Korea, that’s like, a _huge_ thing for your family that I shouldn’t step in. I’m alright, I promise.”  
  


Hyunjin doesn’t take that as an answer. 

“So what if a lot is going on in our house this year Felix? You should still join us for the Christmas holiday!” Hyunjin begs his best friend, “You are family after all!”

Felix gives him a look of confusion. “Uh, not really?”

Hyunjin gives him a look, crossing his arms. “Seriously?”

“...Yes?” Felix says.

Hyunjin thinks for a minute before speaking up once more. “Alright, then name a time you didn’t come to my house unannounced or last minute.”  
  


Damn, he got Felix there.

“Uh…”

“You _are_ apart of our family, Felix!” Mrs. Bang says convincingly, “And it would be terrible if you spent your Christmas all alone at home.”

He shakes his head. “No, I don’t want to be a burden to you guys, especially since it’s Christmas, and as Hyunjin said, you guys are hosting, which means it’s already going to be hectic enough…”

“Nonsense!” Mr. Bang scoffs, pushing up his glasses to the upper bridge of his nose. “Regardless of how many people are in our home doesn’t mean we won’t leave the doors wide open for you, Felix! You should still come; it’ll be fun!”  
  


Knowing that almost all of the Bang family members are trying to persuade him to join them this Christmas without realizing the problems this could cause, Felix doesn’t know what else to say. Being Hyunjin’s best friend since their elementary school days had both its pros and cons, especially when it came to the Bang family as a _whole_. One trait that all members of the bang family seemed to share is their constant persistence and generosity. (Well, Hyunjin’s generosity depended on whether or not he felt like it.)

“I don’t know…” he stressed, but the Bang’s don’t stop there.

  
“Well, how about this then, Felix; promise us you’d join us for Christmas Eve dinner at least. I bought some very high-quality meat from a seller down in Brisbane, and I’m bound to have bad leftovers if I don’t feed a whole bunch.” Mr. Bang says.

Felix’s stomach automatically grumbles at that. Mr. Bang was known for his delicious meat skills, and the Bang family themselves always had a feast full of sweet and savory treats.

He hesitates. But before his inner thoughts could warn him once more, Felix’s stomach manages to force himself to speak for the entire group instead.  
  


“I guess I could stay for dinner...”

_Lee Felix, you absolute fool._

“...I mean, I’d have to ask my folks first, of course!” he adds shakily. “So I’m not sure yet!”  
  


The Bangs take that as a yes. Mrs. Bang claps enthusiastically to the answer while Mr. Bang smiles before turning back to his newspaper. Hannah is grinning ear-to-ear, still clutching her phone with an ongoing text conversation among her older brother while Hyunjin squeals.

“Yay, Lixie! I knew you’d say yes!” He shouts, almost sucking the air out of the other as Hyunjin squeezes his best friend into a tight hug.  
  


Felix gulps. What has he gotten himself into?  
  


* * *

  
Christopher Bang is coming home while you’re spending Christmas with his family.

THE Christopher Bang is coming home while you’re spending Christmas with his family.

_Oh God, Christopher Bang is coming ho-_

  
“Felix, have you not been listening to what I’ve said in the last five minutes?” 

Felix blinks a couple of times before turning to the person next to him, his friend Kim Seungmin.

He first met the dandy Seungmin in an Astronomy class last year. Even though Felix ended up hating said Astronomy class towards the end, _including_ the professor who taught it because he took the “fun out of learning in general,” Felix has been friends with the studious boy ever since. 

There are just times when Felix unintentionally tunes Seungmin out when there’s so much going on in his personal life, and unfortunately, this is one of those times.  
  


“Uh… yes?” He tells him.

Seungmin gives him a look. “Really now?” he asks, crossing his arms. “If so, what did I say then?”  
  


Felix freezes.

“Uh…” he starts, trying to quickly think of an answer that would most likely relate to Seungmin’s current dilemma.  
  


Seungmin rolls his eyes. _Time’s up._

“Just as I thought,” he mutters, “Thanks for the help; it’s not like this decision I have to make is extremely crucial to me, and the least you could do is try and support me a little.”

Felix frowns. “I’m sorry, Seungmin,” he apologizes, “I just have a lot on my mind right now.”  
  


Seungmin’s annoyed expression instantly softens after Felix’s confession.

“I’m sorry about that, Lixie,” Seungmin tells him, “Do you want to talk about it? You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

Felix sighs, pinching himself on the arm. “It’s just that I’m worried, that’s all.”

  
Seungmin raises an eyebrow at him.

“Worried about what? Exams and classes are over for the semester, Felix. There’s nothing else to stress about it unless you’re me, who has to announce his major next semester officially-”

  
“My best friend’s brother is coming back home next week,” Felix unintentionally cuts him off, “And I haven’t seen him in years, which is just going to be weird.”

“...Weird how?” Seungmin questions.  
_  
_

Thinking about a particular best friend’s brother causes Felix’s cheeks to sprout a crimson blush, and based on seeing Felix’s nervous expression, he wordlessly answers Seungmin’s question.

  
“I see,” his friend states boredly, “You have a _thing_ for him.”  
  


Felix sputters at this.

“W-what? No, I don’t!” he weakly protests, but Seungmin narrows his eyebrows.   
  


“Fine, it was like a small crush.”

Seungmin gives him another look.

“Okay, a big crush- but so what? It was in the past!”

“Felix Lee.”

  
"Alright, fine!" Felix puts his hands up in surrender exasperatedly. “Yeah, sometimes I stalk his Instagram even though I don’t follow him, but every time I check his account, it’s dry _;_ he barely posts! And when he does, it’s in ugly black-and-white, and he never shows off his face! It’s just either random nightlife aesthetics, random scenery, or just his muscles! His really, _really_ nice muscles…”

“Felix, you’re going off-topic here,” Seungmin warns.

Felix sighs, switching views between his half-empty peppermint mocha and his friend before finally landing his gaze back on Seungmin. “Sorry,” he says, “It’s just that it’s been years since I’ve seen Chris in person, and back before he went to Seoul to study and later work there full-time, I was a nervous wreck every time around him. Why? Because he was _so_ hot, Seungmin, literally my type!”

Seungmin snorts. “You sound like a _child_ right now. There’s no way you could’ve been _that_ embarrassing back when he was still around.”

The other groans, automatically registering one of the most awkward interactions he’s had with Christopher Bang in his brain. He doesn’t want to share it, but the timing and relevance are now good more than ever.  
  


“Promise me you won’t laugh if I tell you.”

Seungmin quirks up at that. “No promises.”

Felix rolls his eyes. “Whatever, I was going to tell you either way,” he says before taking another deep breath. “Back in high school, I would always go home with Hyunjin after our classes ended, and my mum would pick me up from the Bangs’ house.”

“You _still_ go to Hyunjin’s house to this day, except you have a car this time. How adult of you except that you’re still a bad driver,” Seungmin points out.

“Shut up, we all know that! As I was saying, one time after school, I was learning to roller skate on the sidewalk out front, and right when I seemed to get the hang of it, the moment Chris came home and pulled into the driveway, I got so clumsy I ran into him. But instead of letting me fall flat on my face, Chris caught me in his arms! Just like any rom-com cliche! And instead of saying thank you as any courteous person would, I started yelling out random nature facts to him, which made it worse because I think I accidentally spat on his face! Luckily Hyunjin was inside going to the bathroom when this happened, but still- sometimes my evil sleep paralysis demons haunt me with that memory to this day, especially Chris’s confused response of ‘Uh, cool?’ and nearly dropping me afterward!”

  
Seungmin blinks at Felix’s story.

  
“Felix, you’re so gay.”

  
“I know!” Felix whines, “An embarrassing one, especially! What am I supposed to do knowing he’s going to be home for the holidays?”

Seungmin shakes his head, taking a sip from his caramel latte before answering him honestly. “You can’t really do anything about this, considering it’s his family.”

Felix groans again, face planting his head down on the table. Seungmin doesn’t bat an eyelash at the reaction.

“I mean, you could probably do one thing, though.”  
  


Felix looks up.

“And what is that?” he questions.  
  


“Survive.”

Felix throws a balled-up tissue at the other’s face.  
  


* * *

It’s the day before Christmas Eve.

Technically Christmas Eve-eve, but that wasn’t the point.   
  


Either way, Felix wants to gauge out his own eyeballs.  
  


Christopher Bang was going to be coming home soon in just a few hours, and Felix was currently dreading his existence and cursing out his own shadow since then.

He tried to convince his parents and his sisters to let him tag along with their plans no matter how boring it sounded, but as Mr. and Mrs. Bang had already informed the Lee’s of the invitation for their only son to join in their holiday fun, Felix’s mum prevented him from escaping the Bang family’s Christmas. His mum reprimanded him for attempting to escape the plans, telling him, “The Bang’s are nice folks. Don’t cancel on them for Christmas!”

She had a point- it was rude and uncharismatically Felix if he did that to them, especially to _Hyunjin_ of all people.  
  


This brings him to now, staring endlessly at the Bangs’ living room ceiling while his best friend and the rest of the Bangs are scattered around, all impatiently waiting for their eldest son to arrive through the front door.

Felix should’ve been at home right now.

Why _wasn’t_ he home right now? He didn’t need to be at the Bangs’ family home until tomorrow for Christmas Eve dinner!  
  


But here he is now, sitting on one of the living room armchairs laying in the improper way to sit in a chair staring at their ceiling, contemplating nothing but death right now.  
  


“Dad, when did Chris say he was coming home again?” Hyunjin asks his father, who checks his watch with a grunt.

“Over the phone he told me he would be landing in Sydney around the afternoon, so right around this time.” Mr. Bang answers, “But remember Hyunjin, it just takes time and pa..”

The doorbell rings.

“...tience.” his father finishes with a sigh.  
  


“He’s here!” Lucas, the youngest Bang sibling, yells, racing to the front door with Hannah in tow.

Felix is the only one who stays in his exact position, eyes refusing to leave the ceiling as he hears everyone else hastily scramble to greet the eldest Bang at the door.  
  


Eventually, Felix hears the sounds of the front door being unlocked, followed by a lot of cheering and excitement. _If I don’t think or stress about it, I’ll be alright until I leave Hyunjin’s house_ , Felix tells himself as he closes his eyes, slowly trying to snuggle more comfortably in his current sitting position.  
  


“Hi, everyone!” someone very familiar loudly boasts.

Felix’s eyes bulge wide open at that; his heart rate is already beating at an unhealthy speedy pace.  
  


“ _Chris_!” Felix hears Hannah shout in response. “I missed you, big brother!”

He hears a familiar laugh that he hasn’t heard for years, followed by a small ‘oof’ to the sounds of someone (Hannah) slamming into someone- most likely hugging her brother.

“Hello, Hannah. Way to spoil my Christmas gift and force me actually to buy stuff.”  
  


A laugh from the entire Bang family fills the air.

Realization finally dawns on Felix on the leather armchair. _Oh god, he’s really here.  
  
_

Hyunjin suddenly appears out of nowhere, hovering over Felix and blocking said ceiling view.

“Lix, what are you still doing sitting here? Get up!” he grits, “My brother’s here!”

_  
Oh god, Chris Bang is really here.  
  
_

Felix slowly scrambles out of his position before choosing to continue standing around the living room, not daring to walk an inch closer to the main attraction. He sees Hyunjin give him a raised eyebrow and a look of suspicion at how the other refuses to join the others.

“Let’s move to the living room, son. You must be tired from your flight!” Mr. Bang suddenly announces.

 _  
You’ve got to be kidding me!_ Felix panics, feeling his palms beginning to sweat as he hastily rubs them against his corduroy jeans.

  
“Barely, dad! But alright!” Chris laughs, “Also, wow, mum, these decorations are _tree-mendous_!"

Chris Bang is making Christmas puns. Oh, God.

That should be illegal. It _needs_ to be unlawful.  
  


Felix purposely turns around to stare at some old Bang family photos on the wall to distract himself.

Mrs. Bang seems to beam at the compliment, though. “Ah, Chris, you haven’t changed a single bit!” she laughs, squeezing the eldest. Hearing Chris’s hearty laugh in the background only makes Felix’s cheeks turn a deeper crimson.

  
As everyone seems to move inside the horrifying living room space finally, Hyunjin clears his throat, roughly tapping Felix on the shoulder to turn around.

Felix gulps before finally shifting to stare at the man he dreaded seeing the most.

“Chris, you remember my friend F-”

“ _Felix_ , of course, I do.” Chris finishes for Hyunjin, turning to Felix with a grin. “Been a while, huh?”

_  
Oh, God._

_He got hotter._

Christopher Bang was just as attractive as Felix Lee remembered him, considering he basically grew up with him and Hyunjin almost his entire life. But seeing as the older has grown and matured more overtime, Felix is starting to question if there’s something in the Korean water supply that caused him to look like someone who stepped out of a magazine or model shoot.

Is he even _single?  
  
_

“And Felix, you remember Chris, don’t you?”

Felix’s brain short circuits right then and there.  
  


“H-hi,” he stutters, “You are how Chris?”

Thirty seconds have passed when he realizes his mistake.

_Oh my God, Felix, I know you did NOT just say ‘YOU are HOW?’ to Christopher Bang!’  
  
_

The entire Bang family gives him a confused look, including the now-extremely handsome former crush that’s coincidentally his best friend’s brother that he just talked to.

Felix attempts to redeem himself from second-hand embarrassment and clears his throat. “I mean… ‘ _sup..._ bro?”  
  


_That’s your redemption arc, Lee Felix? Seriously? A ‘bro’?_

And if the gay gods could hate him any further, do you want to know what Felix does afterward?

  
Jazz hands.  
  


Lee Felix just did _jazz hands_ and said the gayest “bro” in front of _Christopher Bang_ and the rest of his family, waving his tiny hands shakily with the most nervous expression on his face.  
  


Hyunjin gives him a look of disgust in the corner.

The rest of the Bangs have puzzled looks on their faces, most likely wondering what the heck just happened within the last thirty seconds of their existence.  
  


Meanwhile, Chris is seemingly the only one unfazed.

“Haha,” Chris says, “Not much, bro. Nice seeing you.”  
  


He just bro-zoned Felix. That’s already hell for the gays.

We did not win today, ladies and gentlemen.  
  


And to make things even more embarrassing, Christopher Bang lightly high-fives one of Felix’s shaky jazz hands.

Lee Felix confesses to the murder, your Honor. Please send him straight to death.   
  


Why? Christopher Bang.

And for also using the term ‘bro.’ Hyunjin will never let him live that down.

The “Felix Making Himself a Fool” show is eventually cut short, much to his relief when Mrs. Bang pats her eldest son’s shoulders and they make eye contact. “Aw, Chris, look at you, honey! You look tired.”

  
Chris nervously waves that off. “No worries, mum, I’m _pine._ Get it?”

The rest of the family chuckle lightly at the continuous use of his puns. Felix, on the other hand, keeps sweating.

“Alright, son,” Mr. Bang chuckles, patting his son’s back earnestly. “Although your jokes are funny, I have to agree with your mum on this one. How about you take a rest for now? You just came straight from the airport after all.”

  
“But dad, I just said I’m p-”

“ _Pine,_ I know. But later we can all catch up, yeah?”

Chris eventually gives in. “Okay, dad. But just letting you all know, this Christmas has me feeling extra _Santa-mental_.”  
  


A loud chorus of laughs fill the room once more, and Felix’s freckled face is about as red as a cherry tomato now.

Hyunjin’s hot brother Christopher Bang making Christmas puns on Christmas where Felix will have to endure a Christmas Eve dinner with while trying to keep it in his pants _as well as_ try and forget that he had a massive crush on the older years ago is _not_ the way to end his year of neverending gay panic. Nuh-uh, Felix needs to _tap out_.  
  


* * *

  
“I don’t know why you think this isn’t going to work,” Felix mutters to his phone speaker Christmas Eve morning as he continues to rummage around the kitchen for some more leftover fruit. “I think it’s going to turn out great!”

The person on the other side of the call chortles a laugh. “Whether it comes out great or not, I still think it isn’t going to work because _you’re_ the one executing it in the first place. You might as well just stop messing with ingredients knowing you’re just setting yourself up for future failure.”  
  


Felix grimaces. “Gee, thanks for the constant support, _Seungmin_ ,” he grumbles, opening his fridge and grabbing a few more ingredients.  
  


“It’s always my pleasure!” Seungmin cackles, “But seriously, thinking you can just get away with baking the Bangs a nice and beautiful pavlova and dipping right then and there will _never_ work.”

“It’s going to work!” he shouts, rotating the dessert round as he continues to ice it with fresh whipped cream.

He can sense Seungmin rolling his eyes somewhere right now.

So maybe Felix was currently putting all of his blood, sweat, and tears into making the Bang family a classic pavlova dessert so that he could later tell them he would have to go home as soon as possible because a last-minute change of plans happened. _So what?_

No, he was not doing this because he was internally chickening out on having to interact with Christopher Bang embarrassingly, _hell no._

It’s just because he would like to prove to him and the rest of the Bangs that no, Felix is not an alien and that yes, he has other things to turn to this Christmas holiday other than unrequitedly falling back in love with his former crush of multiple years ago. Said things include choosing to stay home, watching cliche Hallmark movies, and listening to those actors making Christmas puns instead of a particular best friend’s older brother.  
  


“Okay, Seungmin, I’m going to send you a picture of it and I’m going to need your honest opinion,” Felix states as he adds a few last-minute blueberries to the top, followed by two more raspberries on the corresponding sides.

“Sure, I’ll look at it, but as I was saying, Felix, this isn’t going to work- the Bangs are just gonna sweep you in with wider arms full of holiday joy,” the other denounces. Felix shakes his head. The Bangs are understanding enough to let him slide as he takes a quick snap and sends it to Seungmin within seconds.  
  


“It looks nice,” Seungmin utters a couple of minutes later.

“Thanks, Seungmin. Now I’m going to package this up all nice and neatly, drive over to the Bangs’ house, give it to them and tell them I can’t stay for dinner. Simple right?”

Seungmin snorts. “Yeah, if you _weren’t_ Felix Lee.”

Felix ignores that comment. “Whatever, I gotta go pack this up now. Wish me luck?”  
  


“Yeah, but you’re still going to gay panic and go anyway. I love you and all but accept your fate, Lixie.”

  
Felix tells him he loves him too, as well as a promise to update him about what happens later before hanging up with a sigh. Depending on the situation, Felix might purposely just never notify Seungmin about the future events at all.

He stares at the pavlova in front of him.

“You’re perfect,” he compliments the dessert. “And your beauty is going to make sure I don’t have to attend a Christmas Eve dinner. Your life _depends_ on it,” he later begs. “Now, let’s get you all packed up.”

  
A few minutes after the pavlova is neatly handled and placed into a lovely cake carrier, Felix is putting on his jacket and about to grab his keys when his mum calls out to him from upstairs, "Felix, you're leaving already?"

Felix slides on his shoes. "Yes, Mum! I'm going to drive over there," he shouts.

"Oh, there's no need!" she says, and within seconds both of his parents are piling downstairs with luggage behind them. "Your father and I were about to go to the airport; what if we all just carpool and we drop you off at the Bangs? Saves you a couple of gallons of gas!"

Felix blinks. 

  
_Again, another bad idea._

"Oh, mum, I don't want you guys to be late-"

"Nonsense! We're going to be early at the airport anyway; it's the holidays after all; you have to! Let's go!"

  
Felix feels that this is just another _deja vu_ moment where while he tells someone that he doesn't have to go, another- specifically, family says otherwise.

This is why he's in the back of his parents' car, watching the array of houses move up and down through the car window, followed by more and more extravagant Christmas displays and shops, and later leading up to the Bang family residence itself.

Much to his dismay, both Mr. and Mrs. Bang are outside adding last-minute decorations to the front of their home when Felix arrives, both immediately turning with a smile when they see Felix get out of the car.

_Well, there's no going back now.  
  
_

"Felix, you're early!" Mr. Bang announces as he waves at Felix's parents, who warmly send plenty of love, wishes, and happy holidays as they drive away.

Felix sheepishly smiles. "Yep... Here I am! Merry Christmas, Mr. and Mrs. Bang," he greets.

"Merry Christmas, Felix! What do you got there?" Mrs. Bang asks, pointing to the cake carrier.

"Oh, this?" Felix says, "Um, it's a pavlova. I made it fresh this morning, but it's probably not good considering it's my first time making it myself."

Mrs. Bang beams at this. "That's so sweet of you, Felix! Go ahead inside and put it in the kitchen if you'd like! Once we're done streaming a few more of these lights, I'll help find a nice dish plate to display your beautiful dessert for later!"

  
Felix nods, walking past the married couple and making his way to the front door. However, right before he could ring the doorbell, the door is immediately pulled open, and out pops Hyunjin.

In the ugliest sweater Felix has ever seen.

Oh, to see without eyes right now; this could be the modern-day Medusa.

  
"What the hell are you wearing, Hyunjin?" is the first thing Felix asks, but Hyunjin squeals instead.

"You made it!" he shouts in delight, immediately pulling the other inside, much to Felix's protests. “Merry Christmas, Felix! I got you something here!" Hyunjin cheers, handing Felix a very loud and crinkly wrapped gift. Felix tries not to make eye contact with the ugliest sweater Hyunjin is currently wearing to save his sanity. 

_  
_ Why Hyunjin is even wearing that, to begin with, will indeed be a mystery.

The sweater Hyunjin is wearing... would it even be considered an ugly holiday sweater overall? Or is it just an ugly sweater in general?  
It's an ugly pale blue color that looks ancient, and probably found it in a discount thrift store bin at the bottom of the pile. To make it worse, it has small bells on it, causing little ringing noises with every movement Hyunjin makes, followed by the imperfect lettering of _"Jingle My Bells Baby!"_

He found this sweater from Hell, didn't he.

  
"Don't just stand there, Felix, open your present!" Hyunjin encourages, pushing the package closer.

  
Felix gives the other an odd look as he begins to peel off the wrapping paper. However, the moment he's ripped off nearly all of the sparkly wrapping paper, he looks up at his best friend, who's still smiling a bit too widely.

"Hyunjin, why do you have two of the same sweater?"

"Because I got them for _us_ , silly! Put it on!"

  
_Oh, hell no._

"I’m not wearing this,” Felix deadpans.

Hyunjin whines. “But Lixie, I got them for _us_!”

  
Oh, God. Not again. He has to be joking.  
Felix fears that when Hyunjin chooses to think of others, a demon decides to possess him and persuades him to just dig it out from a trash can instead.

But inspired by current events evolving right before his very eye, Felix would prefer _anything_ from the garbage waste over this sweater.

  
“Were you on something when you bought this then?” Felix retorts.  
There was _no_ way he was going to get caught dead wearing this on _Christmas Eve,_ no less. 

Plus, he already dressed all nice in his cozy sherpa and leggings! He wasn’t going to do this crappy “best friend goals” aesthetic with Hyunjin, no less.

"Oh, come on, Felix! Please, please, please?"

Felix is going to burn this with the Bang family's oven right now. Who in the right mind would wear this? _Who?  
  
_

* * *

  
This Christmas, Felix Lee plans on gifting Hyunjin Bang with the idea of ending their friendship permanently.

His stupid sweater won’t stop _jingling_ with every step Felix takes, plus it's terribly itchy. He's pretty sure this sweater material was probably marked as "INFECTIOUS" by the Federal Department of Health _and_ the Center of Disease Control & Prevention.

"Why am I wearing this?" he asks no one in particular as more and more Bang family members begin to arrive.

  
“Beats me, but it _soots_ you."

  
Felix whirls around to find the source of the voice, only to widen his eyes when realizing it's none other than Christopher Bang.

  
Who looks _hot._

As usual.

_But hotter._

Chris was currently wearing a classic maroon sweater and black jeans alongside a bright Santa hat, which the extra addition was most likely thanks to his other siblings. Chris's sweater seemed a bit small on him but still well-fitted; however, upon closer inspection, Felix could see a few of the older's muscles flexing through the outerwear, which _wasn't_ helping his internal gay screaming.

  
"Nice sweater,” Chris points out, “I’m guessing Hyunjin?”

Felix gravely nods. “I lost rock-paper-scissors, so now I look like one of Santa’s reject elves.”

"Well, you're definitely _sleigh'in_ it," the other says with a grin. “Get it?”

If Christopher Bang weren’t so cute, Felix wouldn’t have laughed at his poor puns in the first place.

But here he was now, sporting a smile and giggling a bit _too_ much.

“You’re funny, Chris,” Felix wheezes. “Have you ever thought of taking up comedy?”

Chris grins. “Not really, but I enjoy making a good laugh or two. I guess it’s a talent of mine… hey! Speaking of talents, mum said you brought a pavlova. I can't wait to try it!"

Felix beams at the compliment. "Thanks, I made it myself, I'm... _elf-taught_ , you know," he replies, using a last-minute Christmas pun nervously.

  
Chris is quiet for a couple of moments before realizing what the other had just said, breaking out a smile.

"Hey, that's not bad! You _sleigh_ me, Felix," he chuckles.

"No wait, Chris, there's _myrrh._ " 

Chris laughs again. "Are you sure you don't want to be a comedian either, Lix? You're great at this!"

  
Felix is about to answer, but it's not until Hyunjin loudly calls out, "Lix! My mom wants a photo of us!"

"It seems like your _presents_ is requested," Chris comments. Felix smiles at this. "I guess it is," he says.

"Since I'm going to help greet the rest of our incoming family members, I guess I'll see you at dinner later?" the older Bang asks. "I'll save you a seat, and you can tell me more about your comedy one-liners if you want."

  
_Oh, God. Christopher Bang wants to sit with me at Christmas Eve dinner._

_Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God-_

  
"Felix, where are you?" Hyunjin shrills across the hall.

Felix stares at Christopher Bang, and without saying anything in response to Chris's seat proposal, runs away in the other direction.

Before running back towards the correct direction of Hyunjin's voice.

Like a _coward._  
  


* * *

  
_Kim Seungmin: Were you able to escape like you told me you would?_

Felix shuts off his cellphone the moment he reads Seungmin's latest text message, stuffing it back into the back pocket of his jeans.

A couple of hours later after an interesting Christmas Eve dinner consisting of Felix pinching himself on the arm multiple times, hearing a few other Bang family members recall past Bang family memories that Felix had never heard of, sharing small finger touches with Christopher Bang while passing down a few dishes around the table, and getting _kicked_ underneath said table by Hyunjin to engage with the rest of the Bang family, the Bangs' house is in full swing. Felix is also full and stuffed from an appetizing dinner, and while he did manage to sit next to his crush, he rarely spoke a _word_ to him, except "Pass the potatoes please?" and nothing else.  
  


Felix is still wearing the ugly sweater, nor has he had time to take it off. He's pretty sure he's going to have a rash when he gets home thanks to the multiple itches and threads poking his back like cheap acupuncture. Multiple Bang family members, much to Hyunjin's delight, had complimented the two for their "holly-jolly spirit" in wearing these sweaters in Hell. While Felix smiles and waves, in reality, Felix just wants to go home.

And he's about to do so right now.

  
Once he successfully sneaks from his current position, the corner of the living room, towards the front door without making a scene.

However, with the equally same loud Christmas sweater, a certain Bang would stop that from happening at any cost.

  
“Lix-ie!” Felix hears an all-too-familiar best friend of him loudly sing within the bustling party afar. “Lix-ie, where are yo-o-o-ou?”

Felix furrows his eyebrows at his best friend’s voice. “I’m over here, Jinnie! Where are you?” he asks out loud as he can’t seem to spot his best friend from all four directions.  
  


That’s when he feels something crash into him from behind, quickly turning around to see who it is, only to be shocked to see his jumpy best friend giggling with a cup in his hand. “Jesus, Hyunjin!” Felix exclaims as the other drunkenly slams into him, the other reeking in alcohol. “What happened to you?”

He doesn't remember the last time he saw Hyunjin after the dinner dispersed and everyone went in different directions and areas around the Bang household, but he swears it wasn't that long.

“...Eggnog,” Hyunjin slurs, holding out his cup. “Aunt Cathy makes the be-est.”

Felix shudders when staring at his cup and its dark orange liquid swirling in front of him.

That was definitely the _wrong_ way to make spiked eggnog.  
  


The moment Hyunjin’s aunt arrived at the Bangs’ home, she immediately made herself at home with Hyunjin’s father’s liquor cabinet and has been drunk since. He’s not surprised Hyunjin got ahold of a dangerous concoction like his ‘eggnog’ she most likely took part in. At the same time, Hyunjin _was_ seated next to her. There could've been multiple instances where Hyunjin could've accidentally taken a sip of alcohol when he wasn't attacking Felix underneath the table.

Felix could've been keeping a closer eye on his best friend as any best friend would, but unfortunately, with Christopher Bang sitting next to him, Felix was too nervous about doing anything except stare at his piling plate of food.  
  


Which brings him to now, wearing the ugliest sweater that should’ve been burned off the face of the Earth with his best friend who’s entirely off his rocker.

And he has no idea what to do.  
  


He quickly does a scan around his surroundings, hoping there’s someone to help him, either Hyunjin’s parents or Aunt Cathy herself (who, even if in a horrible and scary drunken state, could probably provide some good drunken insight or two.) 

However, much to the other’s dismay, his savior comes in a maroon sweater and black jeans, who Felix unintentionally makes eye contact across the room.

  
This wasn’t turning out to be a Christmas miracle.  
  


Felix only watches from afar as Chris excuses himself from his current conversation to join Felix and Hyunjin. The other’s eyes immediately grow wide into a panicked expression upon closer inspection at his younger brother’s current state. “Holy _shit_!” Chris exclaims in shock. “Hyunjin looks _elf-ed_ up. But seriously, what happened here?” 

Felix tries to ignore his terrible wrongly-timed pun, but at the same time, he's never heard Chris curse out loud before. He even boldly assumed that the other didn’t even know what curse words were to begin with.

“Crispy!” Hyunjin giggles, waving at him. “Hi, Rice _Crispy_.”

Chris groans, pinching his nose. “Did Aunt Cathy make you a drink again, Hyunjin?” The drunken nods at his brother eagerly, still being a giggly and hiccuping mess.   
  


“Well, that’s fucking great,” he grunted before turning to Felix. “Do you mind helping me take him back to his room to avoid our parents? Knowing mum’s had a couple of glasses of too much wine, she’s going to freak if she sees this.”

Felix agrees. “Yeah, I’ll help.”

“Great, here, lemme give you a hand,” Chris tells him, holding out his right hand.  
  


_While I would usually appreciate you sitting here mesmerizing over Christopher’s Bang hand in front of you, Felix Lee may remind you that a certain best friend is seconds from puking all over your white Air Forces if you two don’t help move him?_

He graciously takes Chris's hand, immediately getting up on his own two feet thanks to a certain other's strong pull. "Alright, you hoist one side, and I'll get the other?" Chris suggests, and Felix nods, immediately ducking under Hyunjin's left side.

"Heh, that tickles," Hyunjin giggles.

Jesus, Felix does not have the strength for this. The gay gods did not bless him with that one.  
On the other hand, Chris seems to be transporting his brother with ease as he continues to point directions to a non-suspicious route upstairs to Hyunjin's room.

  
“Damn, Jin, you’re lucky mum and dad aren’t themselves right now, or you’d be a _dead_ _man_ ,” Chris grumbles. "I'm definitely not going to forget this one, on Christmas no less." Felix has never seen either of the Bangs’ parents upset, but based on Chris’s tone, he’s sure that it isn’t a good one.

“Y’know,” Hyunjin mumbles, “Y’guys would make a cute couple.”

Both Felix and Chris freeze the moment the words leave drunk Hyunjin’s mouth.

“Hyunjin, don’t say that,” Chris warns him, “Felix is your best friend. I’m your _brother_. He and I are just friends.”

  
Felix feels dumb.

 _Of course, duh!_ Felix shouts in his head. _Chris doesn’t see me like that! What a silly, delusional idea for me to think he would ever like me romantically as Lee Felix and not as Hyunjin’s best friend, Felix!_

Drunk Hyunjin doesn’t stop at that, though.

“Please, Crispy,” he rasps, “Even when you were in Korea, you always text me ‘Ho-o-ow’s Fe-e-e-lix? Are you two still fr-i-i-i-ends?” 

  
Felix is shocked to hear this and quickly sees Chris's expression, whose face looks completely unreadable.

"Hyunjin, you're _drunk_ ," he falters before nudging Felix to move to his right, "Come on, we're almost there."

"Lixie never acts crazy unless you're here, Crispy!" Hyunjin hollers, "That means he li-i-i-i-ikes you!"

Now it's Felix's turn to condemn Hyunjin's drunken state. "Hyunjin, keep it down! You're putting attention on us!"

  
"Eh, it's fine now," Chris cuts in, voice sounding much more solemn than usual, "We're already at the stairs. Help me up?"

Felix agrees, walking up the stairs in silence with him. Hyunjin seems to have finally stopped his loud brigade of thoughts, now mumbling incoherent phrases and words instead of as the other two awkwardly push through Hyunjin's bedroom and toss him on the mattress.

"Should we tuck him in?" Felix questions as Chris walks back towards the door.

The eldest Bang shakes his head. "Nah," he assured, "This isn't Hyunjin's first drink, and you and I both know he's bound to move around again in a couple of minutes. And I _don't_ want to be here in case he accidentally retches up what he just completely devoured hours ago."

Felix cringes at that. Chris had a point- especially when it came to multiple college parties he and Hyunjin crashed that mostly ended with Hyunjin paying the party host reimbursement for carpet cleaning the morning.

"Come on, Felix, let's rejoin the party," Chris says tiredly. Felix looks at his best friend worriedly one last time before following Chris out the door. 

  
The two of them walk down the stairs together in silence, the party and the rest of the Bang family continuing to celebrate the holiday festivities amongst their family and friends. The moment Felix's foot touches the last step, Christopher Bang has already left his side and rejoined the conversation he was taking part in before the Hyunjin incident, leaving Felix alone with his loud, jingling sweater and his thoughts.

Still feeling stuffed and alone now more than ever, especially after an awkward conversation, Felix chooses to sit on the last couple of steps on the stairs and listen to the background Christmas music floating around the air in misery.

_"Have a holly, jolly Christmas; it's the best time of the year..."_

* * *

  
Felix wakes up the next day, Christmas morning, in a room that was definitely _not_ Hyunjin’s.

But one look at his surroundings, as well as a neat array of a variety of swimming medals that only Felix knew belonged to a certain swimming ace back then only made the other realize one thing...

  
_I'm in Christopher Bang's room._

He groans out loud, slamming his body back down onto the mattress. So much happened last night, and a course of whirlwind events has Felix wanting to die even more now- and yet, he's _still_ wearing the itchy, jingling, ugly sweater.

"Merry Christmas to me," he grumbles to himself, closing his eyes once more.  
  


Until he blinks them back open and sits up straight.

Realizing he's the only one on Chris's mattress dawns on him as he quickly twists back and forth to look for the other Bang who's room belonged to him, only to find the other Bang not present, except an empty and messy air mattress next to the floor.

 _Great, while I slept on his bed, I forced Christopher Bang to sleep on an air mattress. What an asshole I am!_ Felix slaps his forehead a couple of times before peeling himself out of bed and sneaking out of the room. The Bang household is eerily quiet on Christmas morning, except for the sounds of a kettle whistling from downstairs.

Assuming it's most likely Mr. or Mrs. Bang downstairs, Felix decides to check on it and say hello, his footsteps lightly touching the floor gracefully until he creaks downstairs. Only the bells on his ugly sweater break the tranquil silence as they ring now and then, Felix harshly gripping his sweater in attempts of shutting it up.

  
However, upon finally reaching the kitchen, he's shocked to see _Christopher Bang_ of all people up so early, stirring a pot while seemed to be whistling a familiar Christmas tune.

However, thanks to a certain jingling sweater, it doesn't take a few seconds for Chris to look up and see Felix standing under the kitchen doorway watching from afar, immediately breaking out a grin.

“Oh, morning, ‘Lix.” Chris greets the sleep-deprived boy, gesturing to the large pot in front of him. “Would you like some hot cocoa?”

There’s a lingering silence in the air for a few minutes, but Felix later nods with a small smile.  
  


“Yes, please,” he answers, and Chris grins.

“Cool, the milk should be at a good temperature in two minutes or less, so you could just chill out here until it’s ready,” he explains before turning back to the hot stove.

Felix finds himself taking a seat at the circular table, jingling and ringing with every stride, staring straight at the intricate orange-and-white round design in the center of said table. He settles in rather quickly.

“Thank you, Chris,” Felix mumbles.

“No problem, Lix,” the eldest Bang answers.

He doesn't know what else to say after that. There’s a silence within the Bang family’s kitchen once more except for the sounds of a wooden spoon stirring through liquid softly and milk bubbling from the heat. 

Chris later starts back up the conversation again.

“You’re up quite early.”

Felix giggles at this. “I could say the same for you,” he points out, “I know it’s only been a couple of days since you flew back to Sydney, but don’t you still feel a bit jet-lagged by any chance?”

Chris lightly laughs as he sits down across from Felix at the small kitchen table, setting a steaming mug of warmness in front of him. “I wish,” he responds, “If it wasn’t for my problem with insomnia, I’m sure I would be groggier and fast asleep in my childhood bedroom right now. Also, here you go, treat yo ‘ _elf._ ”  
  


Only in a time like this would Christopher Bang continue his Christmas puns. However, when Chris finishes his sentence, the other’s bright smile falls when he sees Felix frowning back at him. “Sorry,” he says nervously, “I didn’t mean to pour out something like that so early. Especially since it’s the holidays, y’know.”

Felix shakes his head. “No, no, you’re fine. I’m sorry you have to go through all of that. You don’t deserve that at all. Insomnia _sucks_ ,” the younger finds himself shockingly saying, but when he looks up at Chris to see if his words accidentally struck a tight nerve with him, the eldest Bang is instead softly smiling back at him.

  
“Thanks, Felix. I appreciate it,” he says.

“Yeah, no problem,” Felix waves off. “I’m glad to help. I'm sorry if I unintentionally ruined your sleep last night, given that I woke up in your room...”

Chris waves it off. "Don't worry about that! You kind of helped last night, though. Honestly."

Felix widens his eyes. "Are you sure? I've been probably a nuisance to deal with since you came home!"

"Oh god, no, Felix! Of course not!" Chris says, "Seriously, you always know what to say, and that’s why I always… I don’t know, find it so easy to talk to you?”  
  


Felix can feel the tips of his ears turning red. He really can’t handle his crush complimenting him so early in the morning, as well as say that he's easy to talk to? Him, _Felix Lee?_

“Gee, Chris,” he begins after letting the comment process in his brain for a few more minutes. “I feel the same way, I-”

“I’m really glad that you’re Hyunjin’s best friend.”  
  


The mention of a certain Bang’s name instantly makes the kitchen and its inhabitants grow silent as a recollection of last night’s events and shenanigans play in Felix’s head.

Felix doesn’t like having to face the stone-cold truth, but it’s painfully true: they have to address the oversized elephant in the room at some point.

Hyunjin’s drunk comments weren’t anything but _something_ , and Felix is too nervous about bringing it up, nor brave enough to risk ruining whatever ‘relationship’ this was in the Bangs’ kitchen at five ‘o clock in the morning.  
  


Felix sighs, taking another sip of cocoa before speaking up.

“Chris, about Hyunjin…”

"Hey, look, the sun seems to be rising!" Chris interrupts him, pointing to the open kitchen window. "It's not that chilly outside. Do you want to watch the sunset from the backyard with me?"

  
Felix frowns.

"Uh, sure, I guess?"

Chris smiles. "Great, come on then. I think my parents accidentally left the patio door open, so it should be easier to get into than usual," he announces as he stands up, grabbing Felix's cocoa mug alongside his without asking.

  
There's a reason why Felix had fallen in love with Christopher Bang in the past, which is that he handsome with and without his looks in the first place. He always looks out for others and cares about everyone he meets, including Felix Lee, whose heart will continue to burn unless Chris tells him straight up to let go of these dumb feelings that he has for him!

Soon enough, they're outside. Staring at the sun rising over the wide backyard. 

Chris takes the initiative by taking a seat first on one of many leftover chairs from last night's festivities, patting the chair on his left for Felix to take a seat in.

Too bad Felix's nerves keep him from moving any closer. Chris turns around, immediately detecting the hesitant look on Felix’s face.

  
”Aren’t you going to sit down, or...?” 

_Definitely or. Felix is going to jump the fence with his short legs._

Felix cautiously walks towards the two chairs slowly before finally stopping at the open chair. Taking a deep breath, he finds himself settling in.

Chris wordlessly hands him back his mug of hot chocolate, and the two of them sit together as they stare at the sky and sip their drinks in silence.

The sky is a light indigo color as Felix begins to observe small peaks of blue starting to melt into the scenery when Chris suddenly makes a loud sigh.

”Felix,” Chris finally lets out quietly, “I have to tell you something.”

Felix turns to meet the other’s eyes.

”About what happened last night on Christmas Eve, I’m sorry... on behalf of my _brother_ , especially, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that: I was a huge jerk leaving you all alone for the rest of the night,” he apologizes slowly. “You didn’t deserve that at all.”

_You’re right; I didn’t need to quietly realize that there was never going to be a ‘me and you’ situation until Hyunjin had to say something, thanks._

Chris chooses this moment to stretch out his arms before continuing. Felix tries his best not to show his embarrassment in witnessing his arms flex once more.

  
”I guess I should explain myself, hm?” he asks. Felix doesn’t answer him verbally but gives him a small nod of encouragement to continue.

”Well... what Hyunjin said last night was true. I do tend always to mention you every time I talk to him.”

Felix widens his eyes in surprise.

Chris sighs. “I know, that sounds weird, and I’m not going to lie; ever since I chose to continue my work in Korea after studying there, um, I always tended to... I don’t know, check on you? That’s why I always ask Hyunjin about you every time he talks to me. Which is _a lot_.”

Felix feels a headache coming on right now. Why didn’t Hyunjin ever tell him Chris always wondered whether he still hung out with Felix?

Chris seems to be reading Felix’s mind right now. “I made Hyunjin promise not to mention it to you, thinking it would be weird. If it makes you feel better, he _also_ thought it was weird that I kept asking about you. More than him and the rest of my family, honestly.”

  
He pauses to blow at the steam before taking another sip from his hot chocolate.

”Felix, I know I’m your best friend’s brother, and that what I’m going to say next might be a little hard to hear...”

_This is it. He’s going to tell me to stop pursuing whatever I’ve been doing for the past couple of years._

”But I just want to say that you’ve never left my mind ever since I first met you,” he confesses. “In fact, the moment Hannah told me through text that my parents invited you to our family dinner, I didn’t know how to react. I almost canceled my plans because of that.”

  
Felix immediately gets worried. “Chris, I specifically told them not to extend the invitation to me, believe me! I know this is a whole family thing, and you probably wanted it to be private and all-“ he rushes out, but Chris shrugs off all of his concerns with a quick wave of his hand.

”Trust me, Felix, this wasn’t bad, I promise,” the other reassures softly, “I was just... I don’t know... nervous about seeing you, honestly? Years of me missing seeing you at my house every day does a number to you, you know,” he nervously chuckles at the end, scratching the back of his head.

Christopher Bang... nervous?

About seeing him, Felix Lee?  
  


As hues of pink and purple start to slowly appear, followed by a mix of warm oranges and yellows, Chris takes another deep breath and says yet another captivating statement that completely takes Felix by surprise.

”Lix... Felix... what I’m trying to say is, I like you. Hell, I’ve liked you for a while.”

Felix is _speechless_.

  
Christopher Bang likes him.

Hyunjin Bang’s older brother, Christopher Bang, likes him.

Hyunjin’s brother likes him.

His best friend’s brother likes _him_ , Felix Lee.

  
Felix is about to respond; however, he accidentally elbows his deserted hot chocolate mug that was once resting on his left.

Neither of them is quick enough to save the mug when it hits the concrete pavement with a loud _Clink!_

Immediately shards of white ceramic are scattered, followed by a pool of dark liquid.

“Oh my god, Chris, I-“

”No, no, it’s okay! It was just a cheap five-loonie mug from Woolies! Are you hurt?” Chris says, scouring Felix for any cuts or scratches.

The other shakes his head.

”Okay, good. We should clean this up before it gets worse,” Chris says, hopping up from his chair.

However, as Chris prepares to head back inside, Felix, late, as usual, seems to process Chris’s confession to its fullest extent finally fully.

”Wait, Chris!”

The other turns around in confusion. Felix speedily jumps up from his seat as well, careful not to step into the fallen glass area before stopping right in front of the other.

Chris gives him a puzzled look. “What is it, Lix?”

“I... I like you too,” he blurts out loud.

Felix can’t keep it to himself any longer, and with Christopher Bang feeling the same way as him, this is nothing except a true Christmas miracle blessed to him by the gay gods from up above.

Chris is surprised at the sudden confession at first but later breaks out his usual grin.

”Felix, that’s great news,” he says, “I-“

Felix starts to blurt out the rest of his pent-up crush. ”I’ve liked you for a while, Chris, like for a really, really long time, especially back in high school years and primary! And I know I was probably the nerdiest guy you’ve ever seen walk through your house-“

”Nah, I thought it was pretty cute-“

Felix cuts him off again. ”But yeah, I liked you for a long time! Obviously, I let it go for a bit when you weren’t going to return to Australia after getting a nice job offer in Seoul, but when last week your sister told us you were coming, that’s when all these.. memories started coming back to me and I.. I... I panicked, obviously, like, look at me! But now, I’m like, ‘Oh my god he likes me!’ but the same time I’m like ‘Oh my god my best friend’s brother what a cliche’ oh god, oh god-“

”Okay, Felix, we get the point!” Chris finally interjects, “Just breathe for a second!”

Felix nods, panting out-of-breath.

  
Once Felix seems to have calmed down and back to breathing normal oxygen, as usual, Chris takes this moment to lift the other’s chin and look at him. “Felix, listen,” the eldest Bang sibling starts, “I know this might be a weird thing and all considering you’re Hyunjin’s best friend and I’m flying back to Seoul after New Year’s, but hey, we’re both adults, and we can make this work, right?”

He nods.

Chris smiles. ”Great.”  
  


Unbeknownst to the two of them, sunlight begins to reflect on the entire Bang household, quickly flashing a beam of orange brightness from the side of the two’s eyes. Chris quickly turns to look at said sky.

”Huh, well won’t you look at that,” he comments. “That’s a beautiful view right there.”

”It sure is,” Felix responds, except that he wasn’t looking at the sky right now.

It takes Chris a couple of minutes before turning to meet Felix’s eyes once more, realizing what the other was looking at was simply him this entire time.  
  


However, Felix’s attention span on Chris is cut short when he sees a speck of red decoration behind the other. “Aw, look, Chris, mistletoe!” He cheerily points out.

Chris raises an eyebrow before turning to look at what Felix was pointing at.

”Oh, you mean Hannah’s mistletoe craft. Yeah, I guess it’s mistletoe, to an extent.”

The moment the words leave Chris’s mouth, the two of them meet eye contact once more. There’s a different aura in the air, and Felix can’t help but be more attracted to Christopher Bang more than ever.

“Felix,” Chris begins, voice quieter than usual.

“Yes, Chris?” he answers.

”Can I?”

  
Felix hums.

”You may.”

With his given consent, Chris slowly brings the other closer to his waist. Felix steadies himself on Chris’s shoulders as the other moves his hands from Felix’s waist to his chin.

Cupping it ever so gently, Chris leans in for the kiss.

And Felix does too.

The moment he feels a set of plush lips on his, Felix can feel nothing except a joyous winter feeling flow through his entire body. He can taste a tiny bit of bitter hot chocolate with every given second, followed by what was most likely mint toothpaste from Chris’s start of the day.

Christopher Bang likes him.

And he likes Christopher Bang back.

And even though they didn’t announce they were in love with each other verbally, Felix can taste all of Chris’s affection and adoration for the younger through his lips. He did love the other from head to _mistle-toe_ , after all.

The sun continues to shine behind them as they bask in each other’s warmth and aura, and eventually, Chris is the one to break away, but the two of them still have matching smiles on their faces.

”Merry Christmas, Felix Lee.”

Felix giggles at this. “Merry Christmas, Christopher Bang.”

Chris chuckles before gesturing to inside. “Now, seriously, before my dad freaks out about a stain on the backyard patio, let’s get that mess cleared up, yeah? After, I promise you a fresh new steaming mug of cocoa... and maybe a quieter sweater.”

Felix only blushes at his new boyfriend’s (?) gentleman-like hospitality. “Whatever you say.”  
  


Chris holds out his hand to the other, immediately drawing Felix back to the previous last-night events that happened before. “Shall we?” he asks.

He giggles again. Chris grins back.

”We shall.”

  
Although it wasn’t originally in Felix’s plans to stay at the Bangs’ household after Christmas Eve dinner, he quickly learned that he and a certain best friend’s brother had more _chemis-tree_ in the past, present, and future than he originally thought.

Hyunjin, even though he was still hungover from last night’s holly jolly festivities, praised the new couple with nothing but joy and happiness.

It was the most wonderful time of the year, and Felix couldn’t have been any happier spending it with the people he loved- both near and far.

**Author's Note:**

> AHHHH THIS WAS MY FIRST CHANLIX FIC AND IM SO HAPPY ABOUT IT UWU  
> please make sure you support the other authors participating in this fest as i had so much fun! i hope you all had a merry christmas & a happy holiday! happy new year ~
> 
> UPDATE: reveals have been announced! thank u to staycarols for letting me participate as i loved writing this (i'm still scratching my head at how i wrote 10k+ words...)
> 
> feel free to follow or interact w me here:  
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/caratchans) | [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/skzminchan) | [carrd](https://mazeofmemories.crd.co)
> 
> thank you for the love! have a wonderful day!


End file.
